Rear express sight instal
- Thread starter DGY
- Start date
Whichever you can obtain along with flux. The 96/4 - I think this is the same as Brownells Hi-Force 44 - is very nice to use. Failing that, either of the tin/lead solders will work just fine.
You need a good clamping system. Don't improvise something that is going to slip halfway through.
Practice before working on your rifle.
Temperature management is important. Enough heat for the solder to flow, too much heat will ruin the job, and require starting from scratch.
Solders flow when the base metals are hot enough. You heat the pieces not the solder. Once the temperature is reached, you will see the solder liquify and flow. Remove the heat, let it set up, then cool things off.
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Loctite 480 is much better, especially when the surfaces to be bonded are subject to temperature, vibration, impact stresses.
480 is also better for surfaces which have very tight tolerances as it's much more viscous than 380 and wicks better.
I'm not a huge fan of using such epoxies for "gluing" sights on barrels but sometimes, especially with the rifle and rear sight on the OP's rifle, it would very likely be my go to method of attaching that sight.
If heat is used, that sight should be taken apart to its components before being heated to the temps required to melt solder of any type.
This will remove the finish and any carbon, such as oil on the hinge pins will become rock hard and may be difficult to get working properly again.
Not only that, matching the existing finish will be difficult.
If that were my rifle, I would be trying to keep it as original as possible.
Jonnyofalltrades
Regular
- Location
- North-central Saskatchewan
Prep is absolutely critical. Rough and clean. One thing in your favour is the large amount of surface area involved.
If you don't mind spending money Devcon epoxy has tensile strength numbers a fair bit higher than JB Weld.
My bet is that epoxy or CA glue will last for one box of shells, but not two.
Wagers?
Your rifle barrel should never get anywhere close to that temperature, unless you shoot 20 rounds down the bore as fast as you can.
I have used the 480 on a hex barrel 444 Marlin, to affix a rear and front sight. It's built on a Martini action, so quite light and recoil is uncomfortable.
Couple of hundred rounds, carried in the field, knocked against other rifles in the cab during hunts and the sights are still there.
Butcher Bill showed some pics of sights he installed on a shotgun barrel.
Shotgun barrels are much thinner and easier to heat, as well as keep the heat from spreading.
If you decided you want to solder on that sight, which would make it very permanent, you're going to have to do some damage, like it or not.
It's going to take a lot of your time, if you aren't set up to do that work and you will need proper clamps and tools to "tin" the areas before you start.
You could also use tin strips, but they can be tricky to get the temps right as well. IMHO, I would say whoever soldered on that sight in the first place used one of those strips and left to much gap.
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